OUTDOOR PLAY

Outdoor Play for Children

Table of Contents

Introduction1

Rationale behind Practice3

Benefits of Outdoor Play5

Resources for the Outdoor Play6

Roles and Aims10

Adult Role11

Organising Space11

Organising Outdoor Space11

Forest School12

Forest School Lane13

Research Method13

Context / Location14

Using Photography16

Effect of Weather on Children16

Outdoor Play and Observation17

Evaluation18

Conclusion20

References22

Appendix24

Interview Questions24

Outdoor Play for Children

Introduction

Playgrounds are places where children's play can take off and flourish. Good outdoor playgrounds are large enough and designed in such a way that children's play can come to full expression, where children can make a mess, run, jump and hide, where they can shout, whistle and explore the natural world (Rivkin 1995: pp. 55-63). A variety of factors determine the quality of a playground for young children from infants to eight-year-olds. These include design of the play area, safety issues, play equipment, accessibility, and adult supervision. Particular emphasis should be placed on how playgrounds must encourage all forms of play. There is a critical need to develop a disposition for outdoor physical activities in our young children. Outdoor play should not become too academic and too teacher controlled (Burdette et al. 2004: pp. 353-357).

I work in a small, independent nursery. I work as a nursery manager. I have multi-tasks that I perform; therefore, my job titles are numerous. I refer to myself as the secretary, and the nursery assistant. My role is to see the smooth running of the nursery. I am the one to get the nursery resources. I also have the responsibility to advertise the nursery. I also work on the floor with the children so I do all the observations, planning and assessment. I observe the children and then plan activities that will help in their learning and development in all the six areas of learning and development. My role is to observe, plan and relate with the children. As part of my professional development I have embarked on the BA in Early Childhood Degree Course and part of achieving this is this project on developing an aspect of practice in an area I am interested in. I am interested in developing the outdoor area of the nursery. My interest in this area is because of the fact that I want to find out how children can enjoy the outdoors, stay enthusiastic and learn. Another reason for this is the Educational Advisory Team that has asked me to develop the outside area to include all the six areas of learning.

Therefore, I am embarking on an action research, which is also referred to as practitioner research, as in any practitioner research. I need to consider any area in the nursery that needs development. For this research, I am considering developing the outdoor play area. The decision has been made because of the following reasons:

1.To meet EYFS requirements

2.To meet the child's need

3.To improve provision

4.Benefits of being outside regularly

More EYFS state children must have opportunity to play indoor and outdoor games. In this project, we will discuss the present state and use of play ground for children. We will also propose a plan write to observe ...